Why I Love My Job Ch. 08

"No chance of a rape charge. She's still mumbling about wanting to be fucked. Listen, I thought you were opposed to a hospital stay. Something about the Company interfering and something bad happening to her there."

"Something bad has happened to her anyway. And she has to go somewhere."

"Bring her here," Julianne said. I waved at her to shush her, because Eric was talking.

"-drug sweep is going to find something illegal in her system. You know it will. It's an obvious play."

"They can't charge her on something they find in her blood. There's no proof it was self-administered, she was just abused by someone and they could have injected it. Fuck it, doesn't she have family?"

"In Chindissia. Do you know the culture? They don't want to see her like this."

"Her own family?"

"Bring her here!" Julianne snapped.

"Eric, hold." I stared at Julianne. "How does that help."

"I'll stay with her. You'll cover for me at work. I'll keep her away from guys and drugs until the bruises fade and she can go back to work. You can bring in a services guy to... meet her needs. If she even has any - without the drugs she might not."

"No. We don't know what the withdrawal looks like. She could get violent."

"Same services guy. You hire a body guard who doesn't mind being sexually kind to a pretty girl if it comes up. That can't be hard. She takes vacation for the days she needs -- at her level she has to get some. The beating might even get her sick leave."

Eric's voice cut in. "It's a workable plan."

"Then it could work at your place, too," I snapped.

"No. I don't have a bedwarmer -- um, sorry, Julianne -- to take care of her and keep an eye on the bodyguard. And I do have some girls who visit who wouldn't be as understanding as Julianne."

"Understanding?" Julianne asked, archly.

"Um, she doesn't really get it, does she," Eric said.

"Get it? Get what?" Julianne said, even more archly.

"Men. Self-control is a fiction when it comes to freely available sex. If someone like Cheryl wants it from a guy, she'll get it. Cheryl was willing to do Scott even before she was drugged and messed with. You're pretty much volunteering Scott's cock to Cheryl's use."

"That's not true. Scott said he didn't do Cheryl when he got a sample from her."

Here it comes, I thought.

"Um, true, he didn't. He let me have all of her. But one brief little visit doesn't prove much. Cheryl would be all over him every night."

Owe you, buddy, I thought.

"I'll make very sure his cock stays satisfied."

"It doesn't work that way. Guys are wired to want it from as many girls as possible. When you see a guy being loyal to a girl, it's because the guy doesn't have easy access to other girls. It may suck to hear this, but I've been known to fuck one girl all night and be completely unable to get it up by morning -- until another girl walked into the room. We're not girls, Miss. We fuck when and where we can, simply for the thrill of it. Loyalty is something women invented."

"It's not as bad as all that," I said. "But I agree she can't come here. Julianne and I are just getting things figured out and I don't want the temptation. Eric, you have to take her."

"No."

The light dawned. "Shit! How much do you want, Eric."

"Smart fellow. You'll pay for her babysitter, her upkeep, you'll bribe her boss to fudge the attendance data, and you'll pay for any in-house medical I have to bring in. That won't be cheap. You'll pay to have the drugs and other packages dropped off at her apartment moved, so no one suspects. And I get one hundred credits a day for the bother and risk."

"I'm paying you to fuck her?"

"Your newfound ethics are expensive, aren't they, Scott. Life is cheaper without them."

"In more ways than one. You're being pretty ruthless."

"I'm not stupid. But I'll promise this -- I'll treat her decently, I won't fuck her when she's bruised like this, and I really will make sure she's healed up before I kick her out. Maybe you'll get lucky and that will be long enough to break the addiction. The bruises could be a couple weeks."

I looked at Julianne. She was glowering in fury. But in Eric's place I might have done the same, at least pre-Julianne. He was taking on risk and didn't know how much. Reward had to be part of the equation.

"Possible deal, but hold on, there's something I want to check."

I tapped the phone. "Call Karin."

A long pause, and then a sleepy but somewhat seductive voice whispered "Well... hello, Mister Gladgrind. You do know it's two and thirty, right?"

"Sorry, Miss, but this is about Cheryl and it's important. By the way, you're on with Eric and Julianne. My question is: how long is it likely to take to break an addiction to whatever drugs she's on."

Her voice got more awake, and to her credit, less seductive. "There's no way to tell, Sir. It's generally said that once an addict, always an addict. But if someone wants to get clean, they can. How long before the physical cravings stop depends on the drug and the individual. Weeks, probably. I put together a package of drugs that might help with it -- antibiotics, and a taper for her cravings. But it's pointless. As soon as she hits another supply of the drug, it's simply a matter of how long before temptation wins. It's like having your clit rubbed: it doesn't matter what you think about it, sooner or later you succumb to the orgasm."

I ignored the mental image I got of Karin at that point. "Did you work out what drugs she's on?"

"I couldn't get that from a saliva test. I can tell you she produces Hard Night and a couple of other things that didn't identify on the drug charts. But what she's taking, no. I'm sorry, sir. If the rumors are true I wouldn't be able to figure it out anyway. She's on experimental stuff and there's probably obscurants involved to make sure no one reverse engineers anything from her blood."

"Thanks, Karin. Sorry about the sleep."

"I'm not as angry as I should be, Sir. You going all White Knight to the Rescue is fascinating. I want to see how it turns out for you. That Miss Julianne is a lucky girl."

"Yes, I am," Julianne said, reaching new levels of archness. She clearly hadn't liked Karin's seductive tone.

"Sleep well." I dropped Karin from the call before the two of them started a conversation I didn't need right now. "I think we have a deal, Eric. And I will do my best to take this out of your hide next poker night."

"You can't. Bring Julianne, though, I think she's a match for me," he paused. "You know this conspiracy you're building is getting a little large. You, Karin, me, Julianne, and isn't your historian friend in on it? And how the hell I'm going to convince Miss Suzie to keep her mouth shut... you better hope the Company had no real interest in Cheryl anymore because if they do you are in trouble. Because if I get asked, I will not cover for you. That has to be clear. You let me borrow a hot girl in rough shape but I had no fucking idea the Company had any interest."

"Wait," Julianne said. "Suzie? Her? She'll talk. She'll absolutely talk."

"It's a real concern," Eric said. "Her mouth is good for two things, and only one of them is useful."

I sighed. "And you aren't willing to visit her at her place for two weeks?"

"She'll be beyond suspicious."

"She'll pry," Julianne said. "I've met her and she's... no. Bring Cheryl here."

I stared at Julianne.

"I know," she said. "Look, I get it, ok? She's going to want you. She's totally gorgeous, I get it. But maybe I can handle it if I'm with you if it happens. You just can't... can't... be with her alone, ok? Promise me that."

"Wait," Eric said. "Did your girl just volunteer for threesomes for the Greater Good? Where did you find her, and sweetheart, do you have a sister?"

"Fuck you," she hissed at Eric. "Fuck you for being such a selfish jerk, and having so little fucking compassion that I have to play nursemaid to some poor messed up slut of a girl and then worry about a guy I care about fucking her. All because you don't want to upset a slut like Suzie. You're a coward and a pussy and not even worth the tip of Scott's little finger. I hope you choke on a-"

I wrapped my hand over Julianne's mouth, firmly. "Bring her here, Eric. See you in a bit." I clicked out, and looked at her. Shaking with fury, she rolled over and exposed her ass at me for her spanking.

I gave her a single slap, and then sighed.

"Eh. Someone should have told him that a long time ago. And me, too. Besides, you have other work to do." I grabbed her by the collar and brought her mouth to my cock. "You're going to use your hands, mouth, and pussy to get me off and keep me sated, three times a day because I'll be coming home for lunch. You exceeded your authority in bringing her here, so as much as I love you, you're my fucktoy, on demand and no complaints. If anyone's going to be choking on cock, it's you. Suck it."

+++

Julianne still had a gooey pearl necklace on her breasts when Eric and Cheryl came in. I told her she wouldn't be cleaning up or dressing to meet our guests, because I was a little annoyed at the risk I was taking on. I knew what Eric didn't -- that the Company still wanted Cheryl, and if they decided they wanted her in the next few days I had no idea how it would go down, but it would be very, very bad.

Eric eyed Julianne, slowly, and smiled sardonically. The look he got back was pure hate, but it was Eric and he only found that amusing.

Cheryl was a mess. There were bruises on her arms and legs, around her throat and on both cheeks. They'd be worse tomorrow, I guessed. She was in the same tube dress I'd seen her in at the hotel, but the zipper was broken and jammed, and there was obviously nothing else underneath. Her shoes were missing. She was shaking, but I didn't see any blood. That was bad, in a way. She hadn't even tried to scratch up her assailant. Her eyes were mostly closed and she wasn't talking.

For what it's worth I have never seen a pretty girl be less erotic. Bruises don't do it for me; all I felt was anger, vast and beginning to boil.

I got a knife and cut the dress off her; Julianne brought out pajamas, and looked her over. Her breasts and hips were a little bruised as well, but that seemed to be the extent of it. She'd had sex. Julianne just got angrier, and supported her towards the showers.

Eric looked at me. "Your girl is hot, but I don't know if she's worth it. She's dangerous. She thinks the world's problems are her business. That's no way to survive. I'm only saying it because I think the sex is a little too good and it cut off the blood to your brain."

"Be a fucking human being, Eric. You just saw the aftermath of a beating and rape."

"I wasn't the one beaten and raped, but that could change if this gets out. By the way, I was nice and didn't say anything about you and Karin, but Cheryl might have been aware enough to hear Karin coming and she could let something slip. Especially if she thinks that will drive Julianne off and so she can keep you for herself."

"I'd rather it didn't come out, but if it does, Julianne and I will get through that. She'd left me, she knew something might happen, and she'll forgive me once. Any woman will forgive... once. And I'll make it clear to Cheryl that she's here because I'm being nice, not because I want her. Did she say anything to you about what happened?"

"She's said a total of two words to me this evening: Thank and You, when I told her where I was taking her."

"And you're not angry at all this. Really?"

"No. Scared. Cheryl is the x in an indeterminate equation. Don't you see the symbols? The cross in her apartment, the drugs she's on. X is everywhere around her. She's going to be an ex herself in the end, and she might take people with her when she goes."

"Was that another literary allusion?"

"You really should visit my library. It's got books in it -- real, paper books from an era you can't imagine. Forbidden shit, fnords everywhere. You'd learn a lot -- including what happens to dramatic heroes like you."

"Caring about another human being doesn't make me a hero."

"Of course it does. That's how all the heroes get started. And that's why it's better not to care. Heroes get crucified."